doot di doo...wasting away the last work day of the year here in the office. someone called in sick, so now there are three. these boxes of chocolate are bad for me.

too lazy to post pictures from christmas stuff right now, i'll leave that for next year.

some melancholy...

Christmas time has come and gone...

a merry winter - gifts and food, forgotten laughter
a Fatal error - Kills the mood, Destroys the moment

tears come after

...and here we are, both still.

all alone.

S | R

12.27.96

whoaa ok this stuff is pretty back-logged. only jotted most of this stuff down for myself b/c it was worth noting, probably won't be much here that's of interest to anyone else except for the last 2 entries:

pssst... - Sunday, November 20 2005

mom started knitting a baby blanket today. is this some sort of subtle hint?? =P

Tri's for 2006 - Tuesday, November 22 2005

oooh...i'm excited for the new year already! was checking out TriBC's tentative 2006 schedule at work and i've got my eye on some events:

-March 11, 2006 = UBC Triathlon
-May 22, 2006 = North Shore Spring Triathlon
-June 18, 2006 = Desert Sprint Triathlon

this is a cool song by "Ivan the Croatian": Vancouver Canucks!
http://www.cfox.com/shows/audio_archive.cfm?rem=19889&jor=19889&var=mid#midday

Friday, November 25 2005

let my guard down this week: pizza for snack on monday & thursday.

today it was a hot dog...and then i had a bag of nachos. and then i had lunch. O_o

Tuesday, November 29 2005

whoaa this is cool. i just found this out today:

i) go to http://www.bcit.ca
ii) click on "Contacts" at the top of the page
iii) type in "Raphael" and then do a search
iv) what do you get??


ME!

that's right, i'm cool now...=P

Sudoku - Wednesday, November 30 2005

mom n her teacher friends all seem to be obsessed w/ this new daily puzzle thing that comes in newspapers called "Sudoku". those crazy nips and their mind games...although i think it'd probably be a good thing for me to do once in a while, kinda like a workout for my brain. *ouch* it hurts already. O_o

the Point of No Return - Thursday, December 1 2005

the decision is final. the process has begun and there's no turning back: C O L O R

i was still a little hesitant, mainly concerned with the resilience of colour over time, especially given my active lifestyle. sticking w/ black and gray is somewhat "classic" and has it's advantages, but colour brings a certain life and energy to the piece that just can't be matched by fine lines and shading alone. still, i'm very wary about not overdoing it as i don't want some ugly rainbow-like effect, but rather, i want a darker tone overall; using thick black and shaded areas to bring out lighter coloured details; and bold, black background elements that will contrast with sparingly used brighter colors to create a stunning effect.

long road ahead.

"t" is for transliteration - Tuesday, December 20 2005

hmmm...got some spare time at work, so here's the latest that i've come up with in the search for the correct transcription of my name in its original language:

רְפָאֵל

hebrew is written horizontally from right to left, and from what i understand the alphabet symbols above(from r-l) are known as: Res, Pe, Alef, and Lamed.

until now, i'd only known the consonants but not the vowels. i knew a vowel system existed, but i just didn't know how it worked. the small markings that resemble dots and dashes underneath the first three characters (remember, right to left!) symbolize different phonetic vowels.

i think this transcription is in modern Hebrew though, and ideally i hope to be able to find one in Biblical Hebrew, which may prove a bit hard to find. i'm just glad i took basic linguistics @ UW when i was there, so that i at least have some idea of what the hell phonemes, vocables and fricatives are when trying to research a language.

tune in next time for tales from the Apocrypha and the Book of Tobit...

(whoaa, i feel like Indiana Jones or something...)

News Flash - Monday, December 19 2005

it's been busy lately, hence the lack of blogging. nothing TOO too significant has happened lately (i think...o yeah, i watched Narnia yesterday. that was kinda cool), other than the regular hustle & bustle that regularly comes along with this time of year. i think the only thing worth mentioning right now is the fact that today's work-day (Monday) seemed to fly by nicely. it kinda went like this:

0715(or somewhere around there) - open my eyes, find myself in bed. it's dark outside. can't remember what day (or what time of day) it is for a few seconds...start trying to remember what i did yesterday, "was there a weekend? do i have to wake up for work?"...and slowly i am able to come to the conclusion that it is indeed monday...

0830 - walk through the door to the office in the nick of time...and remember that the manager's on vacation till thursday. *score!*

1030 - it's been a busy morning, lots of phonecalls, damn apprentices wanting to reschedule/change dates for school...O_o time for my first 15...

1045 - we get cake! it's a co-workers birthday, she turns 29 today, so we all get to have cake. it's a nice big blackforest cake. you know, the one w/ chocolate, cherries, and whipped cream? *nice!*

1300-1400 - lunchtime. everything's closed, campus is dead. grab an issue of DOSE to read, eat my sandwich(es), yogurt, drink and take a nap.

1500 - i'm sitting at my desk, wondering if it's time for lunch yet...and then it hits me that it's already 3 and i've already eaten my lunch AND taken my nap! O_o?? i'm so out of it...so i decide i need to eat the last piece of that blackforest cake. mmm...

...and then just like magic, it was 1630! woohoo! to end off, what do i find sitting in the mail when i get home? a letter from JET. uh oh...the website said they wouldn't be notifying people whether or not they got interviews until FEBRUARY, so what the heck could this be? *drumroll*...i rip it open...and !BAM! i got me an interview!

*whew*

so this means despite my disgusting-looking passport photo, they thought i was worth interviewing. passport photos are already bad enough, but after i photocopied it for the application, i was seriously thinking they're gonna think i'm some sort of terrorist. i look uber-dark, plus i'm wearing a stupid t-shirt and my earrings w/ my messy hair. didn't really care at the time b/c i didn't think i'd use it to apply for anything important, guess i was wrong. but nonetheless, the powers that be from Nippon wanna see the Nipple, so wish me luck!

i leave you w/ a pic of the toy i'm donating for the Christmas toy drive at work:



someone's gonna be one lucky ass kid this Christmas!

finally...a new episode:



>!ABDUCTION!<

wow...it's been a while again. errr...ok quick re-cap:

freebies - Saturday, October 22 2005
-won FREE tix from CFML, went w/ Erock to the BC Lions game vs. Winnipeg (Lions win! 41-1)
-Cat & Mish's bday @ Plaza afterwards:

(the "turtle death grip"!)
-some good times n free booze.

Thursday, October 27 2005
mom n pops didn't eel like cooking last night (wednesday) so we had dinner by T&T, and i'd just told myself that i'd stop eating pizza so often @ school & abstain from all fast/junk food (chips/burgers etc...) for November, since December would be full of Christmas gluttony...

so i get home and what's for dinner? pizza by Panago. O_o there's no escape!

(fast forward)

no escape - Tuesday, November 1 2005
remember that no "pizza/junk food" vow for November? well i didn't. !doh!first thing i did during my 1030 break @ work today: grab a nice big slice of pizza. only realize what i've done when i'm taking my last bite...tsk tsk. and then mom had to go and buy a big box of Toffifee, and it was just sitting there on the kitchen table when i got home so i had to go and have one. oh alright, not one...some. yeesh...the belly is stronger than the brain. O_o

Mama's Day - Monday, November 7 2005
whew...almost forgot it was ma's bday today! i keep thinking it's the 9th, but good thing it came up a few days ago n i was reminded! so i bought her some flowers on my way home from work. i rmmbr her telling me when i was very little that daisies were her favourit flower. good thing too, daisies are cheap! =P but still, i picked the prettiest daisies i could find:


uncles/aunts came over for dinner, n my dad's sister and my great aunt were both in town from HK too:

(this was the aunt that brought me to China back in February while i was on my HK Trip, and this is the great aunt that's vegetarian, like 80-something, still lives on her own, n cooked me a whole vegetarian dinner when i went to visit her in Kowloon)

JET's go... - Wednesday, November 9 2005
-sent off my JET application tonight...express...we'll see what awaits...

Thursday, November 10 2005
-so busy @ work today. man, i really don't feel like going to the gym today...but i plan on not going all of next week, and i didn't run yesterday afternoon, so i'm going to make myself go. stupid conscience.

i hurt myself, today... - Friday, November 11 2005
-Remembrance Day. wow, it's been 3 years already since that day. i almost forgot, kinda ironic seeing as how i chose this day on purpose so i wouldn't forget.
-session 9 today, about 2 hours. filled in a lot of shading, started bringing out the darker tones in the background...really seeing the traditional style/motif starting to come out. the morning was kinda gloomy; wet and gray, kinda cold so the skin felt a tiny bit more sensitive i think, this time the soundtrack started w/ Johnny Cash, and when i heard the familiar classic "Hurt", the setting couldn't have been any more appropriate. what a way to start off the long weekend...
-picked up the James Blunt cd afterwards, not bad, got some catchy tunes, but doesn't seem to have too much variety. ah well, he's good at what he does.

Mary May - Sunday, November 13 2005
that's the tentative name for the new song me n Johnnypaper have lined up next for recording. i like it a lot better than the 1st one we did, which wasn't bad, but this one's just more my style. spent a good couple hours playing around w/ it after church, killed some time in the mall (*shudder* it's already starting to get that "christmas crowded" feel to it...) afterwards...n that's about it.

close call - Tuesday, November 15 2005
remember that aunt and great aunt are in town from HK? well, great aunt's a vegetarian so a bunch of us went to this vegetarian restaurant in Richmond. vegetarian!!?? i almost died. but i didn't. interesting thought came to mind though; why is it that while a lot of regular restaurants (even fastfood places) have vegetarian alternatives (veggie burgers etc.), vegetarian restaurants don't consider their carnivorous consumers and offer some alternatives to the oily/floury/starchy/greasy morsels they pass off as "meat"? injustice i say!



remember to eat fruit...

If you love turtles you must to do this:



>Adopt< a sea turtle!

whooo, been gone for too long. ok here we go...


Happy Un-Birthday to ME - Sunday, September 25 2005

another year older...almost. the 1st birthday in 3 years where i've been back in my home habitat, feels good to be back. dinner (w/ dessert of course) @ Coal Harbour.


ninja turtle snacks & fancy chocolates, woohoo! am i easy to please or what? oh yes, and of course the trademark "man-purses" lol, no pics though.


thanks for coming out people!
(click HERE for dinner pics courtesy of dan the paparazzi man)


the REAL deal - Wednesday, September 28 2005

finally...24. yuck. zat iz dizgusting...oh well. BCIT's annual fundraiser for Cystic Fibrosis was on today: originally started out as Shinerama, but somewhere along the line during the past 2-3 years they decided to stop shining shoes for dontations, and instead created something they called the "Amazing Race" (probably inspired by the TV Show), in which teams of students gather pledges and compete in a bunch of crazy stunts/events. they asked for staff volunteers so i went; got a free t-shirt, 2 hours out of the office, and a free lunch. can you say birthday bonus? at night, just a quiet night chilling @ Buck's w/ K-mart, Wally n JY. 24. that's 4x6, 3x8, 2x12...the first step into the *gasp* MID-twenties!! O_o

afterwards, finally finished my most recent idea on the guitar: "Falling (Into Space)". decided to put up a list so i can keep track. check out "my music factory" in the margin to get a glimpse of the emissions of my mind...maybe one day i'll listen do dirty gook and finally get some of 'em recorded at his buddy's studio. maybe.

September Rain came down today,
but that's ok, it feels like May...

looks like the pain is here to stay,
would you like to feel some other way?

just breathe a little, lift your face,
and feel the soft September Rain...


Freaky Friday - Friday, September 30 2005

work was ok, department bought me a belated birthday cake. that was nice. headed to gook's place at night to listen to the final version of the song we recorded a few weeks ago: Morning Star (i think that's what he calls it). met his friend jo (our singer) she's pretty cool, next time we can all jam when i remember to bring my keys. the song's got 2 versions; i prefer the cleaner sounding one just cuz i don't know all that technical mumbojumbo and you can hear the distinction between all the parts better on that one, but there's a "ballsier" version w/ more fx n stuff that gook likes, but that's cool too i guess.

Lesson of the Day: prepare for the unexpected.

idiot me backed into some rail/short metal pole in this tiny parking lot, little nudge cracked the rear bumper. not cool. if it was a beater car that i called my own then i'd just duct tape it n call it a battle scar, but no. damn the amount that it'll probably cost to fix it could've been another day long session, or half a round-trip ticket to asia, or a new Warlock electric guitar, or...ok yeah. no sense making it worse. i guess the lesson learned is that you have to prepare for unexpected expenses (although of course it's best to avoid them at all costs!) when saving/planning how to use money. this sucks, but it'd suck more if it was the second time.

hey, i'm allowed to be an moron once a year right? at least...=P


Sticky Rice Sensei - Saturday, October 1 2005

slept all day, managed to crawl out of bed long enough to send in an online application for a BCIT job posting: Timetabler. sounds boring, but nyeh, something to do. something to help pay for that damn bumper too...lol, yeah it still hurts. *just a bit*

i was the young jedi chef today as i got pops to show me how to prepare his famous sticky rice for a potluck tonight...mmm...next time i'm gonna take pictures. it'll be fabulous.

let's test my memory for ingredients:
-soak/dice/shred: dried scallops, chinese mushrooms, chinese sausage, dried shrimp, fresh shrimp, green onion stalks, garlic
-soak "pearl" sticky rice

...and that's where bdb's memory capacity runs out. all i know is that the final step is E-A-T. that's good enough.


Thanksgiving @ Tom's - Sunday, October 9 2005

thanksgiving dinner @ Tom(aka Willy Wonka)'s tonight w/: not one, but TWO turkeys, w/ 2 different kinds of stuffing, a juicy roast, bazillion kinds of potatoes, loved those little pieces of bread w/ brie, pear, & balsamic drizzled on top, stuffed mushroom caps, what else was there....too much to list...oooh, n that spoonful of cookie dough ice cream i had. mmm, that finished it off just right. that ali-goose was nasty though. saw a bunch of the old crew for the first time in a while, took the chance to start collecting some pics for the tat gallery. lemme know if you want me to send you a shot (don't wanna post anything that could be used as "evidence") =P.

these will suffice for now though:




running in the rain - Monday, October 10 2005

was planning on biking out to the track n then running some laps, but the rain looked kinda nasty so i decided to keep the bike inside. i still wanted some exercise badly though, especially after last night's massive dinner, and though it was a bit too wet for a ride, it looked ok for a run. so, put on a hat, tucked my mp3 player underneath a track jacket n off i went...

kinda relaxing to run in the rain actually, nice misty gray all around, cool wind on my face as made my away along the route, pretty quiet out along the streets today, a nice haze all around...felt therapeutic.

drove grandparents back to their apartment after thanksgiving dinner @ home tonight, and afterwards i decided to step in to the neighbourhood safeway to pick up some milk. felt nice driving around the old neighbourhood once again kinda...seems like everytime i did it before, it was only during christmas time when i was back home for the holidays...now the setting was a dark, not so cold night, steady showers, medium traffic b/c it's Fall. just so nostalgic, seeing the place that i recognize but kind of don't...the old sushi place where i had my first california roll as a kid...in the spot right next to where my old family doctor used to have his office, but not anymore. the same old london drugs in the same spot but renovated, same coffee shop, new sign w/ a new name and probably new owners. another familiar sushi joint across the street where this girl i knew from back in highschool worked when i last saw her, wonder if she still does?

you can cut off a branch, but the root never dies,
you can put on a mask and try to disguise...

but you know in the end, there's now way to hide,
this is our story, the truth never lies.


In Control - Thursday, October 13 2005

watching a Russel Peters standup-comedy routine while playing w/ sharp objects = ultimate test of physical restraint/mental control. heck, i was only LISTENING for most of the time and i was already dying...just b/c i've seen it before and i can imagine the dude's hilarious facial expressions...oh man, that was tough.

some retarded lady kept phoning the shop asking for directions while i was there, and each time they explained and re-explained directions she kept calling back every 5 minutes from somewhere just past where she should've turned/stopped...one of the new guys finally gets so fed up he tells her he's gonna stand outside on the sidewalk to make sure she doesn't miss it, so the rest of 'em (incl. rick) decide they want to...no, have to see who in the world could be so incredibly dumb. so you got three big mean-looking guys all standing on the sidewalk in front of the store looking out for her car so that there'd be no way in hell she'd miss the place...so she finally arrives...and she's a *bit* tipsy. surprise, surprise...and to top it off, after the new guy does her work for her, she's got no cash on her! tsk tsk...live n learn Joe...so she left her purse as a sign of good faith that she'd come back and pay tomorrow. that's assuming it's actually her purse...O_o

a tale of three taiko...


reunion - Saturday, October 15 2005

met up w/ PT (he's in town for some Alliance Church conference or something) and a few other waterloo alumni (old & new) for dessert/coffee @ Sweet Obsession on the West Side. good to see PT again and hear what new diabolical scheme he's hatching...apparently there's video evidence of a certain talk now that i must find a way to get hold of hahaha =P
______________________________________________________

well, that's it for now. interview tomorrow morning @ 0900. here goes nothin...

Uncle J. - Monday, October 3 2005

went to see Uncle Jason @ Royal Columbian Hospital after dinner tonight. first time i've seen him since his terrible accident earlier this year. it's been almost four months since he's been in hospital.

a quick summary of what happened: he was fixing up stuff around his house and he fell from a +10-foot high ladder, onto a porcelain tile floor. his wife was in another part of the house at the time, and was only aware of the fall because of the loud crashing noise the ladder must've made. there was no cry for help, no time to yell; all she heard was a *thud* and when she got there all she saw was the fallen ladder and her husband in a crumpled heap on the floor...with a growing pool of red slowly spreading out across the floor from his head.

this was on saturday morning, June 18. the day before Father's Day.

a little history:

ever since i was born, uncle Jason, his wife Brenda, and later on their son Jesse, have all been good family friends of ours. always the "goofy tough guy"...i still remember the times my parents would drop me n my sister off to play at his house/farm after church sometimes. he had a son too, a few years younger than us, and he'd take us out on tractor rides around the fields (i remember how he'd let me steer once in a while), we'd rummage through stuff in the "spooky" old barn, i learned that chicken sh*t smells a LOT worse than cow/horse sh*t...lots of good memories.

originally from Cheung Chau (one of the islands surrounding HK, famous for seafood and dragonboating) he was a crazy fisherman too. i remember when my dad would take me along on fishing trips w/ uncle J and other people, and how uncle J always managed to be the noisiest/most obnoxious one...even if we weren't in the same boat! always doing crazy stuff haha, and he liked hunting too. i think i have a shell-casing or two that he let me have (or i swiped...can't remember =P). it was thanks to uncle J and a few other guys that i was able to have my first taste of venison at some dinner when i was a kid too. they must've had a successful hunting trip that day b/c they decided to have a dinner at someone's place that night, n all the parents brought their kids too. mmm...i still remember that deer meat. i think i got a nosebleed that night b/c i ate too much of it though...lol.

i still remember going to him and auntie Brenda's wedding.

our families were neighbours for a little while too before they moved out to Surrey; a carpenter/handyman by trade, uncle J. built his family's own house just down the street and across the block from the house i grew up in. i was too young to be of much help at the time, but when we did go over he'd let me do little odds and ends like hammer in nails, clear up building scraps, break stuff, shooting things with his nail gun...hahaha, just so many good childhood memories...

although i hadn't seen him up until tonight, i was kept aware of his condition and progress through regular emails/my parents and their friends:

the first few days after the initial accident were the scariest. the immediate news at first was just that he'd "had a fall", but then word came from my mom after she went to the hospital that same day to be with auntie Brenda that it wasn't good, and that it was much worse than a "fall" and that the doctors were scrambling to control the bleeding/swelling to keep him alive. i remember praying for him that very day in our house at that moment in the living room.

the following days were a rollercoaster of slightly hopeful news of the situation being "under control" and morbid news of the doctors having done their best. uncle J's immediate family and relatives were starting to fly in from other countries to be by his side.

after drilling multiple holes and trying different methods to control the swelling in his brain the doctors had basically run out of options and the family was told that they were going to slowly take him off life support as the doctors saw that they were no longer making progress, and that any chance of recovery was remote, and even if there was to be a turn of events, the amount of neurological and physical damage was substantial enough to suggest that Jason didn't have much chance of ever being more than comatose.

this is an email i received on the evening of June 20:

<"Hello Everybody,

Please pass this to everybody you know who is available to pray and
pray about this yourselves. Another CT scan was performed today and
it showed that Jason's condition has gotten worse, to the point where
the doctors will no longer help him anymore and they are basically
waiting for him to pass away. Please pray for Jason as hard as you
can and that God will heal Jason.">

at this point the doctors had done all they could, medical science and technology could do nothing more to save him. this story could have ended here, but it doesn't.

what i saw tonight was really nothing short of a miracle. we walked in and saw him lying on his hospital bed in the far right corner of the room with his head turned towards the right facing the corner. as i approched he seemed to be asleep, but when i got closer i could clearly see his eyes directed at us, and they followed as we walked to his bedside. he looked like the entire left side of his skull was missing, it basically looked like a deflated basketball. yet his eyes were intensely alert; always focusing on something, not just "zoned out". you could tell that he knew who we were and why we were there. he could move his left leg up and down, he'd respond to a thumbs up, and he even nodded is head when my mom asked him if he recognized me. he was very much alert, although probably very tired from visitors throughout the day and having gone through another operation just a few days ago. before leaving we all prayed for him, holding onto his left hand as we did. he followed us out with his gaze, and he waved goodbye as we left.

now despite all the positive stuff, we all still have to remember that he's only just come out of the valley and there's still a long, hard road of recovery ahead. on the bright side though, i know he isn't going to have to walk that road alone.

i'm praying for you uncle J.

One Step Closer... - Saturday, September 17 2005

one step closer to what you might ask? to being a turtle. that's right, a real live turtle. no, i didn't dye myself green, or learn ninjitsu overnight...i didn't even go out n buy a red mask/headband. but i got myself the one thing that ANY turtle (regardless of them being teenage, mutant OR ninja) must have: a shell. this was long overdue, but better late than never right? schweet...

after taking a prolonged break while training for the tri, it was good to get back to business and get in another 2-3 hour session. it's finally starting to look like one single complete work of art now, and not just 2 or 3 separate pieces. very happy w/ what's going on so far, i can see all the ideas both old and new working together nicely, just hope we don't run out of space if i suddenly think of other elements...but no everything that i wanted to be there is pretty much there. the only other thing that i might want to include is some representation/symbols using the taiko drum:


i'm imagining 3 separate locations, much smaller scale, but i gotta do a bit more research on that though before i decide, as well as figure out where the heck to fit them! =P

after the day's business was done, it was time to log some more time @ ghettofabulous studios for the evening where we laid down the framework for a few songs, powered by some Subway and "limeade".

finally, made a brief trip down to Hapa to chill w/ JB, willy wonka & Maverick before deciding to call it a night, and head home to scrub my new shell.

the end.

mission accomplished

still waiting for official time-chip results & more event photos to be posted, and i think i'm gonna wanna write a fairly lengthy description (from what i can remember) of my first tri. for now, here's a view of the transition (for switching from swim-to-bike & bike-to-run) area:

next stop...Buntzen Lake - Tuesday, September 6 2005

depletion done. ok, so maybe not done very well (couldn't continue exercising to maximize glycogen-depletion b/c i was sick, plus being away @ camp the food wasn't exactly low-carb)...but now it's time to carbo-load!

for those that don't know, carbo-loading's something that endurance athletes do to try n maximize their performance on race-day. basically the way it works is that about 7 days before the race, u start lowering your carb intake (to deplete your body's carbohydrate/glycogen stores), as well as continue moderate exercise which will further deplete your body's fuel tank. the idea behind continuing to exercise while decreasing your energy supply is that your body will start to store more glycogen (some sort of carb) than it normally would to compensate for the lowered amounts that you're feeding it.

then, the final 3 days before your race you're supposed to do little to no exercise, and load up on your carbs. unfortunately, this doesn't mean eating pizza, fettucini alfredo, n a lot more of what i thought was good stuff. pasta is good, but they say no creamy stuff (damn!); more like dry pasta w/ a tiny bit of tomato sauce n a bit of parmesan =(. *sigh* "compact" carbohydrates are good too, b/c they won't take up so much intestinal space (i.e. jams, juices, sports drinks). and, now that you're body's been "tricked" into storing more glycogen than normal b/c of the depletion stage, you'll be able to "overload" your fuel tank so your glycogen levels can be optimal for race day.

i just raided Superstore for supplies tonight after going for a final swim @ Bonsor, think i'll put up a list of what i'll be munching on after the whole thing's over for interest's sake.

so neway yeah...going on a "diet" was hard, but i think this portion of the process (the pigging-out portion) should be almost completely natural to me. only thing that may bring tears to my eyes is that i gotta lower my intake of meats, fatty stuffs, n all the other delicious things that make life worth living. =(...but no matter.

ok, so that's it; 3 days to go. if you can crawl out of bed on saturday morning, come !watch! my first (and possibly my final) tri. =P weather will hold up hopefully, and it's an awesome venue. some helpful links:

Race Day Schedule
(i'll hopefully be there before 0800, the half-tri race starts @ 0930. the event expo w/ booths, food n exhibitors opens @ 0800 so u prbbly could show up anytime after that.)

Driving Directions



see you @ the finish line!

(i hope...=P)

a quick update...Wednesday, August 31 2005

piece of advice: triathlon training and a f/t job do not go well together. add a stubborn fever and a throat infection into the equation and well, you're an idiot.

ladies and gentlemen...i believe i may have re-defined idiot.

long story short, i thought i was getting better, modified the training to be less intense, but still somehow managed to get sick again. not as bad as before i suppose, 37.5C instead of 39.5 (for now), but this sucks. no matter, i've been keeping some notes on training progress over the past few weeks, but i'll post 'em later when i have time/energy. i was basically feeling "ok" on the road to recovery when i went for a 30min. trail run @ Central Park after work on Monday evening, n when i got home it was just all downhill...aching, fever, etc... o yeah, n did i mention? i'm going camping in Washington over the Labour Day long weekend. lovely...

and as if me getting nasty sick a week before race day wasn't convenient enough for adding suspense to this triathlon tale...they just recovered the body of missing diver Erik Bezur; a 24-year-old Olympic hopeful from N. Vancouver (may he RIP), from Coquitlam's Buntzen Lake at 4pm on Monday. yes, that's the same Buntzen lake the triathlon will be held at...now that's kinda spooky.

for now, Clavulin is my drug of choice, and i'm more determined than ever to get well enough to just do this bad ass of a triathlon n get it over with! it's crunch time...

more tales of stupidity... - Tuesday, August 9 2005

so, the past few days i've been an idiot showing utter disregard for the stress limits of the body. what else is new?

mind over matter: the "Starbuck's Loop" - Saturday, August 6 2005

big Brick #1: reaally didn't feel like doing any exercise this morning, woke up feeling some aches n pains from the last few days. so when i asked myself if i wanted to follow through w/ my plan to try out what i've dubbed the "Starbuck's Loop", i hesitated. my arms were sore from the gym, my hamstrings ached from running/biking, and my boobs hurt cuz, well...u know =P.

BUT,

after a bowl of cereal, a cha-siu-bao, n a bit of stretching, i stuck to the plan n headed out just after 1000.

man, i hope to God that this route that i'm training on is harder than the actual race course b/c if it isn't...uuy i'm in trouble. the "Starbuck's Loop" got it's name from the fact that i decided to measure the distance with the car's odometer when i drove out to Buck's one night from my house. it's a relatively quiet route w/ minimal traffic, and some pretty challenging climbs/inclines. well, ok mr. Armstrong would probably think they're nothing, but challenging for me at least! here's directions if anyone wants to try it:

*Start: bottom of Royal Oak Ave. where it intersects w/ SE Marine Drive
-take the scenic route going West along SE Marine Drive (relatively flat, slight-moderate inclines)
-turn Right heading North up Matheson Cres. (big incline)
-then Left on Champlain, which winds & turns into Tyne St at around 54th Ave. (moderate incline)

*1/3 Mark: this is around the 5km mark where i'd usually turn left n head down the block to Buck's, but not this time...

-keep going till you hit 49th Ave, turn Right n head East until Boundary Rd (relatively flat, slight incline)
-turn Right n go south down until Rumble St. (slight-moderate decline)
-make a Left onto Rumble n head East until Royal Oak Ave. (mostly flat, slight incline)
-Right on Royal Oak Ave. back down the hill to where i started/home. (big decline)

*Final Lap: ok so you basically repeat the first third of the Loop again, but this time instead of going straight @ Tyne & 54th Ave, make a left...

-keep going West till you hit Rupert St. (slight decline)
-make a Right on Rupert n head North until 49th Ave/Killarney CC Track (flat)

...and yeah, so that's about 15km. ditch the bike at the side of the track, drink some water n get moving. a 5km run divided by 400m of track means...12.5 laps right? woohoo! mad math skillz...

so yeah i'm glad i made myself do it. gives me an idea of what it's like to have your motor running over an extended period of time, since all of my workouts up to this point have only been 25 minutes at most. weather was decent too; kinda overcast so it wasn't too hot, but still kinda sunny. the bike route's challenging too, w/ the hard climbs coming in the first and final thirds of the loop, which forces me to push hard so that i'll (hopefully) know what it's like to pace myself and have enough energy leftover to finish strong.

of course, there's still a long way to go, plus i haven't even tried doing the swim first (haven't been swimming for a few weeks actually O_o), i eased up during the run and walked half of my 7th lap, and if for some reason the car's odometer isn't very accurate and this "15km" route is actually only 10km? i'm toast! but let's think positive...whooosaaa...

alright, so here's the time to beat when i try n do this all over again next week:
Overall Brick Time (15km/5km) - 1:34:17

now, for some nutrition. mmmm, time to raid the fridge...

sidelined...again - Sunday, August 7 2005

dammit! this is retarded...but somehow, i guess i should've seen this coming. yesterday's brick must've taken a little too much out of me, and i swear i must've woke up like 3 times this morning (at 0730, 0800, and 0830), drinking a big glass of water each time, then waking up to piss 30min. later, then back to bed; only to repeat the process again 30min. later... got that weak/sick feeling along w/ the "uh oh..." voice in the back of my mind too. same sore throat feeling as a few weeks ago (minus the cough), and that "tingling-body" sensation you get when you feel like you have a fever coming on. i already declined going out last night too, slept early, drank lots of water - hence the frequent urination (yeah, you like that word don't you? lemme use it again: frequent)

boy this really sucks. must've been b/c i didn't full recover from the previous cold/flu, so when i started exercising again my immune system probably just caved in again. yeesh...so, i did the sane thing for a change this time, and didn't do the Grind as planned. in fact, i'm reluctantly thinking of shutting it down for the next 3 days if i have to, and maybe seeing the doctor again if things don't get any better. took my temperature before dinner n it showed a "slight" fever, but i hope i can do w/o seeing the doc if that feeling goes away after a good night's rest & some softcore drugs. if not, then i guess i'll have to visit the doc to get the good stuff.

at least pops was good enough to pity me n make me some "healthy" dinner:

corn soup & chicken caesar salad. =P

i am Hot - Monday, August 8 2005

-throbbing headache at work, headrushes each time i got up
-took my temperature when i got home after work: 39.5C

ok. i need a doctor now. O_o
---------------------
...so yeah. took the afternoon off work today (tuesday) to see the doc, told him what was up, n he said i might have mono. what?! mono?! he told me they sometimes call that the "kissing disease". what?! who've i been kissing that i should know about? but then he tells me that's just a nickname, and that i could've possibly gotten it from just about anywhere, esp. from eating out & if a food handler had it. ok...so then he did a throat swab sample, then sent me off to the lab for a blood test.

here's the deal: there is no possibility of good news. it's either a) the mono virus; in which case he says the effects are extreme fatigue (great), and that it could last anywhere from a week or 2 to 6 months. 6 months?!! bloody hell! and he said there'd be no medication to prescribe for that, just have to let my body fight it. great.

OR

behind door #2...could be b) a bacteria; in which case he'll prescribe another anti-biotic. he says there's 3 kinds that can work: biaxin, tetracycline, and clavilin(sp?). he gave me biaxin last time (so that's out), tetracycline's out b/c apparently he's got it on record that i'm allergic to it, so i guess if it comes down to it it's clavilin.

so, now that i'm home from going straight to the lab after the doc's n letting the lady w/ the chin stubble and a name tag that said "okilinia" poke me in the arm 3 times before getting a "good vein" to draw out a couple viles of blood, i've come up w/ 2 contingency plans so that i'm ready for whatever news the doc calls me w/ when he gets the results in 2 business days:

i)virus: load up on echinacea & vitamin C. hope that it'll only last 2 weeks, or if not, prepare to do the tri on drugs.

ii)bacteria: hope that clavilin's cheap.

*random rant: everyone must be aware of all those new "energy" drinks being advertised everywhere these days right? u got the oldies: Gatorade, Powerade, Trek...at least those were more sports-oriented. but now you have these new guys like "Shark", "Red Bull", and "Molson Kick", etc... now it's all fine n dandy how ppl wanna have more "energy" n all, but seriously what kind of morons do they take us for? the thing that bugs me the most is the line in one of the ads for "Molson Kick". they say something like: "...with guarana, a natural source of caffeine." ???? i thought caffeine wasn't all that good for your body anyways (not that you can't have a little tea/coffee/whatever), but what bloody difference does it make if it's natural?! these drinks are giving ppl high doses of sugar/caffeine/whatever to boost their "energy" levels, but honestly how healthy is that? and if it's a given that too much caffeine is a bad thing, why the hell would i care if it's from a "natural" source or not? that's kinda like saying: "hey, a punch in the face instead of being hit by a machine; wow! a 'natural' source of pain!!"

chumps.

whoaa...it's been a while. so, what's been going on? hmm...i think i took some notes, but let's ask "somebody":

(*"somebody" is used as a term referring to a person/entity/group, not being limited to or indicating the same person/entity/group in each instance.)
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somebody spent some time in jail...

(#s: 17 arrests, 6 full patch members, 5 days in lock-down, 1 man at large)
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somebody took their last trip to Cultus Lake as a Bachelor...

(#s: 11 guys, 6 sea-doos, 1 keg pale ale, 1 speed boat, 1 tube & tow rope, 1 pair granny panties, 1 training bra, 1 trailer trash tee, and 13lbs of MEAT)
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somebody spent a lot of time sitting in this chair...

(#s: 6 bills, approx. 5 hours, over 2 separate days)
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and this past week (after recovering from the summer flu), somebody managed to get back on track...

(#s: 75min. of running @ approx. 400m/2min, 24km biking, 7 days)


a little bit over a month left before the tri which means i need to; keep cranking up the training intensity (w/o killing myself) for the next 2 weeks, then back off and just do moderate stuff, figure out what bike i'm gonna be using, get back into the pool in 3 weeks, and make sure i carbo-load properly in 5 weeks, a few days before the race.

piece of cake right?

mmm...cake...

well, that's about it for now. o yeah, got to chill w/ somebody who came back from Japan, n said farewell to another somebody who left for China too...but i got no pics O_o . work is kinda boring but that's ok, i can't complain; at least i'm making money.

training goals for next week:
-1st attempt at a big brick on Saturday (15km bike followed immediately by 5km run)
-Grouse Grind on Sunday
-Monday/Wednesday/Friday: 25min. run during lunch
-Tuesday/Thursday: 5 mile bike during lunch

hmm...for next week, i think it's safe to say:

"SOMEbody gonna get hurt...real bad..."

O_o

burnout... - Tuesday, July 19 2005

feeling generally pretty crappy these days, and for once i'm glad my morning job is deadly boring; i basically sit in front of a computer and stare at the screen, waiting for work to pop-up at me from the real-time database...work that's rarely been there so far b/c of the summer. it started out as a nagging cough last week, but lately it's been getting worse, n i started feeling worse, so i took my temperature the other day and; slight fever @ 38C i think, so despite me not having full extended health coverage nemore, i reluctantly made an appointment to see the doctor. =( this time, i may actually have to pay for my drugs!!

guess it might be the temperature, too much time spent out in the sun/training. think it might've started off w/ those 2 days of swimming 2 weekends ago, plus the bricks i did almost every other day for the past week. the workouts are getting tougher, i'm pushing myself further, and i'm honestly getting a little more anxious about how well i'll do in the actual race. i mean, i haven't really been able to do a real "trial run" b/c i haven't found the time/space, but my conservative guess-timate puts me near the bottom of the pack in terms of finish times (based on results of previous triathlons w/ identical distances). really don't wanna overtrain though, that'd be nasty...to work hard n get all psyched up for it...n then only to get sick and have ur fitness level deteriorate just before the big day n then bomb it? not cool. <2 hours. that's my goal for now, seeing as how i've got the swim down at approximately 22min. and the run coming in at somewhere near the 25min. mark, add in possibly a 60min. bike leg, and then another few minutes to compensate for fatigue...so yeah under 2 hours. hopefully that might change as i get a bit more confident when i try n "peak" my training in August, but for now i think my body needs to take a week off (at least) n try to recover to full strength before starting it up again.

in other news...as fate would have it, my appointment was unexpectedly cancelled again today. i was pretty pissed when i heard, but after i thought about it, i shouldn't be. i'm friggin sick over here n pushing a fever, not exactly the best physical condition to be in for something like that, plus it'll give me a bigger window of time to get back into the pool to train, so i guess it worked out for the best. besides, spending a couple hours sitting around w/ your shirt off is definitely not the best way to get better if your sick. i just hope buddy gets his act together so i can hopefully finish off this piece before i'm friggin' 30 or something...yeesh. O_o

o yeah, i really wanna learn how to play drums too. been trying to use bobo as my practice pad:


"c'mon...1 + 2 +..."
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"...+ 1 + 2 + 3..."
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hmmm...i don't think she appreciates the drumroll massage...

(*psst: "i need drugs!")

check it:

DQ Commercial

training's a beach... - Sunday, July 10 2005

things worked out nicely this weekend; had JB's housewarming dinner/party thing w/ tons of food on Saturday night...so it was a good thing the weather was nice enough to head out to the big pool @ Kits Beach right beforehand n try out the 750m distance to prep for September. this baby's the largest outdoor pool in the world (i think) @ approx. 130m, so i guess this is the closest thing to swimming in open water that i can try before taking on Buntzen Lake. did 6 lengths, still felt ok afterwards so i took a quick break in the sun before doing it all over again. both times clocked in at just over 21min. i hope that's good enough, cuz it'll have to be!

after working up a good appetite, headed over to JB's new downtown apartment, pretty nice setup. ate some disgusting amounts lasagna, pineapple-ham, roast beef, mashed potatoes, veggies...oh...n of course mr. tom (my hero) comes through w/ the crazy ass designer dessert: "raspberry crisp". of all days...yeesh, wish i'd have brought the camera. ah well, there were plenty of flashes coming from elsewhere so i hope i'll eventually get to see some of the candid moments. damn...seeing friends move into new places really gets my needs/wants/priorities all mixed up; bike/car/place...all pending on me landing a more secure job of course. uuyy...

so sunday morning after church...bbq in the park. burgers, hot dogs, potatoe salad...uy...on top of the food that's still digesting in my stomache from last night...o boy, good thing it was sunny today so i could go back to the beach/pool one more time. did the first 6 same as yesterday, climbed out n squeezed my new shoes on (these wicked trail running shoes i got the other day for just $50 on sale from Sport Mart!) n tried to "run" immediately after the swim. i found out it's kinda hard to run when you don't really have any idea where you're going, n even though i figured i'd just run in a straight line for 10min. then turn around n head back, it doesn't help when there's ppl in your way everywhere you turn, n the seawall route was blocked off for some stupid festival that just so happened to be there this weekend. great. uyy...so yeah, wound up running around who knows where, just glad i didn't get lost n found my way back to the pool after about +20min. was planning to do another 6 but was just too tired...n hungry. n i had to pee. so that was that.

this was the last swim for prbbly at least a month, so back to running...and we'll see how the biking goes. don't think i've ever biked 15km before, maybe give it a try next week? we shall see...

o yeah, i just so happened to get a certain piece of paper in the mail near the end of June.

check out:


the Graduate

it's been a while...but nnyyeh, feeling lazy. dn't wna typ 2 mch. think i may have just passed my own death sentence today - officially signed up for the XTC Vancouver Off-road triathlon. just the half-XTC though, so it should be quick n painless. O_o

the route:

750m swim/15km mountain bike/5km trail run.

new (to me) song to learn on guitar i just heard the other day by Theory of a Deadman:

...aaah, Santa Monica.

maybe i should go back someday...see if the wildlife has evolved any. =P

RED GREEN ALERT!!! - Friday, June 24 2005

herbie's missing!! no, not that stupid car that stupid lindsay lohan pretends to drive, herbie the tortoise!!

(Full article)



i didn't do it.

( . ) on the move...

swimming
-saturday: 3x10 lengths (750m total)
-monday: 5x10 lengths (1250m total)
-thursday: 3x15 lengths (1125m total)

running
-friday: 20min. road (approx 3.5km total)
-wednesday: 20min. track (4km total)

eating
-sunday: bbq dinner (1 smokie, 1 burger, numerous ribs/wings, misc. fruits & salad, 3 slices strawberry cheesecake)
-tuesday: dinner @ West (some weird funky appetizer, awesome beef tenderloin entree, and desserts)

post-training notes: right shoulder's sore, legs are dead...but stomache just keeps going n going, n going... =P

neway it's a gloomy, wet friday afternoon, but the work week's over! gonna meet up w/ Lorna n Peebs for some dessert later on tonight (mmm...more cake...), but only after some more ink. bring on the pain... >=]

*edit: a phrase people commonly use to express their annoyance at something/someone is that they "get under their skin". i find it interesting then, that it is the exact opposite for me; the fact that someone was not able to "get under my skin" today, that has me just a little pissed off. O_o go figure...

random bits... - Sunday, June 12 2005

1. *fact: work is disgusting

2. *observation: running doesn't seem to be as bad as it first was anymore. so i wussed out of signing up for the triathlon this past Victoria Day long-weekend, but i've made up my mind n here's the deal: if i can clock 5km in under 22min. (running) by July 1st...that seals my fate. gotta sign up for either the Vancouver Triathlon or the XTC Off-Road one. no excuses. (uyyy...O_o hope i don't regret this)

3. *thought: food drives me crazy, but music keeps me sane. therefore - i must be a very well-balanced individual...
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(don't you agree?)

dirrrty busy past lil while @ work...high season in Student Records, sucks to be me; billion things to do at once, ppl pulling you in 5 diff. directions, not so much fun.

Saturday, May 28 2005

Tat2 Show @ the Empire Landmark on Robson st. cool contests (best flash art, grey, full color, worst tat, etc.) international artists. prbbly the most HA's i've seen in one place at one time (all sober too). no pictures though, didn't see anyone else snapping shots except the reporters, so i wasn't gonna go n rock the boat. i usually wouldn't care, but this boat's an exception.

got hungry walkin' back up through downtown afterwards, had to get a whopper - which meant i needed some exercise after. so, b/c the sun was blazing (+30 degrees!) i headed down to kits. place was packed, swimming in that +125m pool was great, good practice for triathlon swims. exhausted.

what a waste - Friday, June 3 2005

it's pretty challenging starting work in a new environment, being a minority in ethnicity, gender, as well as age. you work hard to gain respect starting from the bottom up...and for the past month i believe i've been displaying the correct amount of willingness to learn/humility, combined with a strategic level of assertiveness to show my colleagues that i am every bit as capable and industrious (if not even more efficient) as they are. it felt great then when they began seeing me as an equal; a true co-worker and a completely capable, mature, individual in the workplace. they were seeing a lot of potential in me to do great things for the company...alas, all that changed when our supervisor brought donuts to the office today.

that image that i had worked so hard to impress upon them; the picture of nobility, level-headedness and sound judgement that was my reputation, was completely thrown out the window when they walked in that morning by my desk near the front door of the office...only to see a trail of spotted white powder on the carpet, leading up to my chair, where i sat, greedily shoving a jelly donut into my face, powdered-sugar all over my cheeks n nose...just lovely. great. i went from "model-employee", to "savage DNS (donut-sucking slob)". u blew it dude. that donut better have been worth it.

ooh...but it was...

Friday, June 3 2005

one must be thankful for good friends around the globe. it is an honour and a blessing to know that there are those both near and far who are proud to call themselves comrades, and vice-versa. i received a token of friendship today from the other side of the country...nothing big or fancy, just a lil something that has brightened my day. thanks dudes. hey, after all...
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...what are friends for?





(and no, you are not mistaken. the sai is indeed probing my probiscus!)

there doesn't seem to be a whole lot happening that i can remember lately. bloody job is kicking my ass...O_o

spontaneity - Saturday, May 21 2005

wrestled w/ my guitar strings today...and lost. dammit, i change these things like maybe once a year. i really should try n write down how to do it so i don't have to start again from scratch each time. O_o

so, b/c i was such a genius, i forgot to leave some slack in the string before i started winding 'em up, and subsequently snapped the G-string (that wasn't intentional btw). so, seeing as how i was going out neway, i decided to take a slight detour & dropped by downtown to pick up some new strings.

the 50% off books were calling out to me, n i picked up an intermediate flute book. hey, we got an old flute sitting at home that my sister used to play when she was in like grade 5 n it's just rotting away, so i figure why not try n learn right? yeh...so i grabbed my strings, my flute book, then went n sat in the sun n had some 99-cent pizza on Seymour st.

then i went home n had gi-normous mushrooms for dinner:
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they were huge
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...must be "magic"...
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...or mutant?

they were gigantically delicious. now if only we'd had steak to match!

Sunday, May 22 2005

visited dirty gook's new apartment in Yaletown; studio-living doesn't seem so bad, looks like an interesting investment opportunity too. after checking out the place (mostly the kitchen) & downing 3 mini-pizzas we got down to business n started jamming away; him on his guitar, n me pounding out some riffs on the keyboard n filling in some 2nd guitar every now n then. went through some good ideas, then went to the local Blenz for a break afterwards (to see if we might catch a glimpse of the local "wildlife" he keeps telling me about). lofts/studios eh? hmmm...something to think about...

as for my flute-playing progress, i'm proud to say i've managed to spit out a C+ scale, frere jacques, silent night, and some chinese folk song. not bad for just a few hours! and for those that think the flute's a "sissy/girly" instrument, don't judge before you've tried it. my left thumb's still killing me from holding that thing up, n my right shoulder all cramped too! O_o

superheroes @ Rona - Monday (Victoria Day), May 23 2005

crappy weather, guess it's a good thing i didn't sign up for that triathlon over on the North Shore today. ah well, more time to train. went for a swim @ Bonsor, haven't gone in a while so i thought i should try out 750m in a pool n try to estimate how i'd do in the opening leg of a sprint triathlon. both good & bad conclusions: seemed to cover the distance faster than i thought i would, but it was a lot more tiring than i thought it'd be. sooo, this means....?? (i need to swim more) O_o

summer finally decided to show it's face in the late afternoon, helped pop go to Rona to pick up 24 garden logs for the backyard project they've been working on. so i'm wearing my $10 Batman shirt when we pull into the parking lot @ Rona; and we bumped into Superman, and Batgirl while we were there. what a small universe...

*random: ma always told me not to play with my food...
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...but i just never listen. =P

had to make note of this story i came across on Tuesday May 17's National Post:

'Piano man' mystery stumps U.K.
_____________
Nameless stranger
will not talk,
only plays piano
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By David Sapsted


LONDON - British police are trying to identify a man found wandering on a beach five weeks ago who has not spoken a word but who turns out to be a piano virtuoso.

Officials at the Medway Maritime Hospital said the man has not spoken since being found soaking wet in the southeastern Kent coastal town of Sheerness, dressed in an expensive black suit and tie.

He is in his twenties or early thirties, slim with short brown hair and about 6-foot.

After failing to elicit any details from the patient, who has shown signs of being nervous around, hospital employees gave him a pen and paper, hoping he would write his name. But instead, he drew a flag of Sweden and detailed pictures of a grand piano, showing not only the keys but also the intricate inner workings.

When staff took him to a piano in the hospital chapel, he played expertly for two hours and, since, has written music and staged recitals lasting up to four hours.

"I am not knowledgeable about classical music but I could tell he was pretty good," said Michael Camp, a social worker in Medway's emergency department.

The hospital's staff have taken to helping the stranger, quickly nicknamed "the piano man," to compose more pieces as efforts continue to determine his identity.

A spokeswoman for the West Kent National Health Service Trust would not confirm reports that he has played sections of Swan Lake by Tchaikovsky, although she said he had staged a "beautiful" performance.

"There was nobody he was with skilled enough to recognize the music, they just knew it was classical music and played very well," the spokeswoman said yesterday.

"He's not talking at all," she said. "He's very frightened. He's drawing, but not to communicate. We are ware that he is a very vulnerable man and we would be putting him in a dangerous situation if we let him go."

Interpreters from Poland, Latvia and Lithuania were brought in to see if he was from Eastern Europe, and possibly an asylum seeker, but no one has been able to get him to talk. Despite the fact he drew a Swedish flag, police believe the man is probably English.

The hospital made an appeal for help from the British public on Sunday through the national service for missing persons, and released a photo showing a tall, thin man in his twenties or early thirties, with closely cropped blond hair and hunched shoulders.

"The Missing Persons Helpline has been inundated with calls. It's a fantastic response," Mr. Camp said later.

"A name has been given of a possible person from the Sussex area. I haven't been able to phone the person that phoned in to check it out."

He added: "We had one of these before, from the local area, and it sounded promising but...people start to think 'It might be this person that we know' and it doesn't quite materialize. We'll just have to wait and see."

Some callers said they thought they had seen the mystery man play at concert halls throughout Europe, prompting police to begin contacting orchestras to see if they can identify him.

"He has been playing the piano to a very high quality for up to four hours at a time and staff say it is a real pleasure to hear it. But we still have no idea who he is because he is not speaking," said Ramana Venkiah, manager of the psychiatric unit.

The man is now being held in a mental health unit in north Kent, which has no piano, until a full assessment has been carried out.

"There is no doubt that this man is extremely distressed and depressed. He has started crying over the last week or so. It may be that some sort of trauma has made him like this," Mr. Camp said.

"I cannot get within a yard of him without him becoming very anxious. Yet at the piano he comes alive. I can stand close to him and he is oblivious. It is extraordinary. The first time we took him down to the piano he played for several hours, non-stop."

The case has drawn comparisons with the Oscar-winning 1996 movie Shine, which tells the story of acclaimed Australian pianist David Helfgott who suffered a nervous breakdown while playing.

The Daily Telegraph, with files from news services


is that friggin crazy or what? i swear; real life is definitely stranger than fiction...

finally, some more of...

:the HK Journals:

DAY XX: Lantau Island, Stanley Coast (Southern HK Island) - Thursday, February 24

1100: wake, Starbuck’s for breakfast in HK. 39HKD for a chicken salad sandwich + coffee of the day

1130: bus over towards the East to JUSCO (mall), walk around till 1315 n meet up w/ UT
- take a long MTR ride to Tung Chung, then hop on a bus to go to Lantau Island to check out the big Buddha statue

- normally this statue’s big enough that you can see it from over a mile away, but today it was so foggy that I could barely see it even when I was standing right at the foot of the monument. it’s on top of a long stairway, on the peak of a little hill, n only when the wind blew the fog away was I able to see it. It’s pretty friggin’ huge though:

1735: afterwards, took the bus back to Tung Chung station, grabbed a snack @ this place that reminded me of the Bread Garden

1900: get back to the Causeway Bay area, hop on a public minibus (#40) n head to “Stanley Market” (Chek Chue) on the southern side of HK Island.
- it’s a quieter area, some expensive housing, lots of foreign investment & large HK companies pay good coin to house employees over on this side of the island
- usually some good shopping here too supposedly, but stuff’s closed by the time we get there

2030: dinner @ “Chilli & Spice” Thai restaurant
- place reminds me a bit of White Rock, pretty touristy, has a strip right along the beach, quite a few foreigners

2200: back @ UT’s in Sau Kei Wan, drink some soup that Aunt Winnie made for me, check email, etc…

2245: head home on 2A bus.


End of Day XX
(Full Album)

DAY XXI: Veggie Dinner in Choi Hung & Bloody Expensive Sashimi - Friday, February 25

Morning: had to call mom’s friend Aunt Barbara about setting something up for this Saturday, they want me to volunteer @ some awards ceremony or something??
- tells me she’s gonna get her younger daughter’s friend Tiffany to meet up w/ me tomorrow @ the MTR station n bring me to the ceremony, where they’ll give me instructions on what to do. O_o (sounds like a setup!!)

1225: on my own, managed to find my way to “runner street” (this place on the Kowloon side where the whole street is full of stores that sell all kinds of runners. funny thing is, I hear all the stores are owned by only 3 guys. ahh, they must be the “footwear tycoons”)

1300: so dazed from seeing so many shoes…everything looks the same. These hongers are crazy! finally bought the shoes I was looking for, start looking for food.

1345: grab lunch in Langham Place mall @ “Café Coral” (this place is about as common as Tim Horton’s is in Ontario I guess) for 25HKD

1530: home for a nap.
- Tiffany calls to touch base n arrange a time to meet tomorrow morning @ the MTR. She just graduated from some University in the states (California?), but she still sounds pretty honger to me.
- Last minute: Aunt Yu Ming calls later on, wants to take me to see some relative tonight. This lady who basically acted as her, my dad’s older brother, n my dad’s guardian/mom for a large part of their childhood when the family had to separate; with the 3 older siblings moving to HK w/ this lady, n their parents staying behind in China to take care of the 5 younger children.

1845: MTR to Choi Hung stn to meet up w/ aunt, visit “Grandma #2”
- this lady’s one tough cookie; she’s in her 80’s, lives on her own, still very energetic, eats vegetarian.
- She made us vegetarian dinner…I was starving so bad…but politely ate everything set in front of me, and she said my earrings were “pretty” O_o

2015: after visiting, head back home on my own, make a pit stop @ McD’s (I needed meat!!)

2140: met up w/ Junky n Angel, they took me to some sushi place that’s sposed to be really good.
- I don’t normally eat sashimi much at all, but I made an exception since they said this place was really well known n that movie stars n other rich folk would go there. It didn’t look fancy at all; just a tiny shop in the side of a building, the size of a large kitchen, stools, plain tables, n just a transparent tarp covering the entrance!
- Pretty crazy though…we just sat down @ the bar, n the chef dude just starts talking to us n making us stuff, whatever he feels like. Junky says he goes here around 2x/week, so that’s why he’s familiar I guess, but yeh…scallops, sea urchin, salmon, tuna, eel, octopus, all the good stuff, plus some other stuff that I had no clue about…we ordered some cooked stuff too, but most of it was raw
- Now although it was good…I still wasn’t really full b/c like I said, raw isn’t really my thing, but I thought hey I’m on vacation so I’ll try it. Junky had told me before we went in that the place was “a little bit expensive”, so I thought alright, prbbly like $20-30CDN/person. That’s more than all-you-can-eat prices here, but I thought ok it’s worth it to try something new. The actual bill for the 3 of us? $1300 HKD!!! That’s over $200CDN?!?! Man…that was a cool experience, but I’m never going there again…lol

0000: meet up w/ Colin, took him up to Junky’s bar, had a few drinks, chilled.

0130: home, shower, crash.


End of Day XXI
(Full Album)

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